Advantages

Disadvantages

pleased with this product

At some point, and I think it is fair to say more quickly than you could imagine, that little baby who once fit into a teeny moses basket is going to grow big enough to need more grown up sleeping arrangements. When, in my experience, at somewhere around age 2 they climb Houdini-like out of the cot, the hunt for the "big bed" is on.

This toddler bed is what we purchased pretty swiftly after our first child landed on the floor with a loud crash on the floor in the middle of the night, and proceeded to refuse to contemplate sleeping in a cot ever again. We didn't have a cotbed (cot you can take the sides off to change into a bed) so needed to buy something suitable and safe for a 16 month old, and this toddler bed proved to be a durable and good value choice from John Lewis. Most importantly for us at the time, it was quickly available, and fairly good value, we paid a little but not a lot less than the current £97.

The bed is actually cotbed sized (L145 x W77 x H78cm) and comes in flat pack form; you will need to buy a seperate mattress and these can be purchased from John Lewis, where they start at £29, or bought elsewhere. You will need to get a mattress that fits your requirements - bear in mind that the next stage is likely to be potty training, so something with a washable cover is probably a good idea. A pillow is also a must at this age - I read somewhere that a good pillow is as important as a good pair of shoes, as protecting developing spines. Again there are special cot bed sized pillows available.

Assembly of the bed is a fairly straightforward affair, requiring the use of an alun key. The slats are assembled so it really is just a matter of adding on the foot and head of the bed and the rails on the side.

The bed does conform to British safety standards, and a sticker on ours states that it should be used from 15 months onwards, and for a child of 50lbs maximum. The rails on the side can be removed if you so wish, once the child has learned to sleep in a bed - we kept ours on until our child was ready for the next sized bed, somewhere near 5 years old.

I think that this bed is nicely made, it is solid wood and, being birch, is a nice finish and durable. We found that neither of our children have fallen out of it, and also that being cot bed sized it does take up a lot less space than a single bed, which is a plus in a small room.

You can use cotbed sheets for this bed, you may wish to buy a cotbed sized duvet and pillow, but otherwise a single duvet tucked under the foot of the bed is a cheaper alternative. You could buy a single bed as a first bed for you child as an alternative to this - but because our child was so very young when she decided that the cot was not for her, this was a reassuringly safe choice.

We have been really pleased with this toddler bed - we have most definitely exceeded the weight guidelines of this bed when perching on it for story time, and after a few years' use now the bed is still in perfect condition.

I think this bed, which is sold by John Lewis but bears the Global Nursery products name, is a very good choice for a first bed, and I thoroughly recommend it.

Further info: this bed is also available in a white finish, can be viewed in all John Lewis stores and also has a matching changing table.